My calculator (An HP 48gx, for those who don’t know) has been in my glove box for the past week or two, and last night I went to get it out so I could use it to complete some Physics homework. Come to find out, the screen has been busted! There is a crack running the entire width of the screen, and a great big black splotch where the LCD stuff oozed out all over the view area. Doesn’t that just sound lovely?

So, I need to buy a new calculator, and seeing as how it is probably the last calculator I’ll ever buy, I think I want a nice one. I’ve considered both the TI-89 and the HP 49g, and I’m starting to lean toward the HP, mostly because It is a lot like my old one with a lot of cool new features.

Anyway, I need some help deciding. Check out these sites (or find some of your own) and let me know what you think: Pros, Cons, Comparison. I also found a nifty little Emulator and downloaded it to play around. I can’t really get a feel for it until I can wrap my fingers around one, but I suppose this is the next best thing! 

I want to take a moment to ask for everyone’s prayers on behalf of Janene this weekend. She’ll be going in for surgery on Friday, August 30. She’s had Chronic Sinusitis since her childhood, which is basically a costant Sinus Infection. The infection causes scar tissue to form in her Sinuses. These Irritations are called “Polyps”, and in rare cases have been known to be cancerous. She’s had surgeries to remove Polyps about every two or three years since she was little, and none of hers have ever been cancerous.

This time it seems to be markedly worse (it’s only been a year and a half since her last surgery). Her doctor has concluded that this is due in part to her Tonsils. They are very swollen right now, and are probably causing even more infection to get backed up into her Sinuses. Therefore, on top of removing the Polyps, the surgery on Friday will include removal of her Tonsils. I think we’ve all heard about how bad it is to have your Tonsils removed as you get older.

Anyway, I just want to lift this request up to Heavenly Father, and ask that everyone join me in praying that she will be okay and that her recovery time will be minimal. Thanks everyone. 

I’m settling in to all my classes quite well, I think. I’ve done a few homework assignments and I think I have a pretty good idea of what my work load is going to be like (granted it will only get harder from here). I will do fine as long as I keep my head above water—in other words, stay caught up and continue to attend class (which should be a given). My goal is to do better than a 3.7 GPA this semester, and I know I can do it if I put my mind to it.

We had our first meeting for the Union Technology Committee last Friday. We met again today to discuss what we’re planning to do with the website. I’m really excited to be serving on the committee. There’s some kind of national association that all University Unions belong to, and they hold yearly competitions for various union departments, one of which being a website competition. So Dave (the Union Technology Chair, my immediate superior) has made a goal for us to win the competition this year. We’ve been looking over some of the websites that have won in the past, and I really think we could do it. The next few months should be very interesting and fun.

I’m going to start learning PHP and Flash for the Union website, so I might be posting some new stuff on my Computers page soon. Keep checking back. 

Wow, Tuesdays and Thursdays are going to be interesting. I had a 7:30 class this morning. It’s a discussion section for my Physics class and the teacher has a pretty bad accent. He seems to know what he’s talking about in Physics though, so I know I’ll learn a lot from him (as long as I can understand him, that is). However, he went about 15 minutes over today and I don’t think he noticed at all. I was late to my Spanish class on account of that. So I hope he doesn’t do this at the end of every class.

After Spanish I’m done for the day on both Tuesday and Thursday, so I should have plenty of time to do homework during these two days. I hope I can keep up with my schedule working 20 hours a week and attending class 15 hours. I know the Lord will help me accomplish my goals as I go to Him in prayer. He is a faithful God and I am greatful for His guidance and support. 

School started today up at the University. The bulk of my schedule falls on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, so I got to see most of my classes today. I have a discussion section on Tuesday and Thursday that I haven’t seen yet, but I can’t imagine that will differ much from my expectations.

I’m taking three heavily math oriented classes: Calculus II, Physics, and a Computer Science class called Discrete Structures, which will deal with Algorithm Analysis (sounds like a blast, doesn’t it?). The only class that will (hopefully) deliver some variety is Beginning Spanish, which I’m required to take to satisfy admissions requirements.

I’m very happy with all of my professors. My Calculus professor seems like a really young graduate student, but he teaches very similarly to my Math 1050 teacher (at least from what I can tell so far), and I really liked him. The Discrete Structures professor is a real hoot. He reminds me of a High School teacher I once had. He’s one of the most boring professors I’ve ever had, and he can crack a joke without smiling, so you’re never sure if he was really joking or not.

I’ve added some downloads to my Computers page. Check ’em out.